New Beginnings
by Mae Stark
Summary: New Year's is a time of celebration of the future and the new possibilities that life presents, and no one knows this better than Tony. Happy New Year's, everyone! Oneshot, Pepperony, set in movieverse


Happy New Year's! I know it's a few days late, but I began writing this on New Year's Day and I'm finally getting it up now. I hope you enjoy!

This is set in the movieverse, somewhere between the first and second movie. Nothing too deep, I've been writing so much angst lately that it's become depressing and I wanted to write something fluffy. So, here it is.

As usual, I known nothing. This is very upsetting, but it's the truth. I do, however, own 3 Iron Man shirts, a lanyard, and several backgrounds on my ipod. But I don't think that counts.

* * *

It is almost midnight now. With the chime of a clock, celebration ensues and a new year is begun. Tony swirls his drink and sighs. He is old enough now that the years are beginning to blend together, all the same. The coming of the new year doesn't mean much to him, just broken promises and broken hearts and the ongoing cycle of loneliness. Since he came back from Afghanistan, things had been better. But then he had realized that he needed her, Pepper, and it made him miserable that she hadn't felt the same.

He looks across the room and catches her eye, smiling a little. She begins to move towards him, her graceful stride simultaneously perfect and superior and voluptuous. When she arrives by her side, she takes his arm, pulling him towards where the crowd has assembled, awaiting midnight and the subsequent new year. She looks happy, happier than he's seen her in a while, and he wonders for the thousandth time what she could possibly be thinking. She catches him staring at her, and tilts her head in that adorable way of hers that is so completely _Pepper_.

"What?" she asks.

Tony shakes his head, smiling along with her. "Nothing," he answers, "You just look really beautiful tonight."

She blushes, a red tint coloring her fair skin. She reaches up to straighten his tie, then leans forward to whisper in his ear. "You're not so bad, yourself, Mr. Stark."

Tony shivers at her close proximity, and involuntarily moves to wrap his arms around her. But before he can, she has backed away, and is looking off to their left, toward the clock. "Oh, Tony! It's almost the new year! Only a few seconds, now." Her smile widens, and she says something else, but he can't hear her over the roar of the crowd as they begin to count down.

_Ten… Nine… Eight…_

The people around him are all clustered around, collectively chanting, the noise making his ears ring. He glances at the television and sees the crystal ball being lowered. "It's beautiful." Someone next to him comments.

_Seven… Six… Five…_

Tony turns back to Pepper and realizes that the crystal ball is not nearly as beautiful when she is standing right here. She is lost in the moment, chanting the numbers along with the crowd. She is glowing, that glorious smile spread across her face. Tony's breath catches in his throat.

_Four… Three… Two…_

Pepper's eyes wander back to Tony's, and he is surprised by the warmth in them. He feels her petite hands find their way into his, and he thinks he's dreaming. Because as the clock strikes midnight and the countdown is ended with joyous shouts of "Happy New Year!", Pepper is leaning towards him. Pepper Potts, his dream girl and the only woman who has ever rejected him, is drawing closer, her intentions obvious.

As her perfect lips press gently to his, every nerve in his body is alive. The kiss is short but sweet, and when she pulls away she remains close to him, staring deep into his brown eyes, straight into his soul. She smiles like she likes what she sees, and he knows that this is where he belongs: right here with her, forever. He is so lost in her that it could be seconds or hours before she steps away. But her hand remains in his, and it will remain there for the rest of the night.

And just like that, Tony's life is thrown upside-down. His head is still reeling from the unexpected kiss, and he faintly hears the tune of Auld Lang Syne playing around him, but he can't focus on anything but her right now. He knows that this is the start of something new, and it finally makes him happy to think about the future. After all, that's what New Year's is: a celebration of the future of the world and the new opportunities and beginnings that life presents.

Pepper turns her head, her strawberry-blond curls bouncing lightly, and begins to sing along with the crowd. Tony, finally regaining control of himself, chuckles and joins in, his rich baritone voice weaving through her soprano and creating a beautiful, capturing harmony.


End file.
